“I’ll let my work stand for itself,” he said. “I’m not going to change who I am to get this job.”

Johnson would be a popular choice for the players, the alumni and, of course, the Paternoists. He has been a member of the coaching staff at Penn State for 18 years. He is an effective recruiter and an excellent position coach. Whether he has the goods to serve as CEO of the football program, as Joyner calls the head coaching position, is up to the search committee to decide.

Larry is a well spoken, blue and white through and through gentleman who I’d love to keep around in some capacity. I do not know whether he is equipped to handle the side of the college head coaching job that no one ever sees — the stuff O’Brien hated like kissing administrators’ asses, publicly representing the University, fund raising, etc.

Assistant coaches tend to be shielded from that stuff. I’d prefer someone with head coaching experience for that reason. If an up-and-coming coach wants to get that kind of experience, it’s better to start with a less difficult nut to crack than Penn State!

The other issue that arises in my mind with LJ is that I despise inbreeding. On the academic side, many universities try to control it by having a policy about not hiring their own PhDs for permanent faculty appointments. I’d like to see new ideas at the top of the program.

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Whodat Turkey?

The Nittany Turkey is a retired techno-geek who thinks he knows something about Penn State football and everything else in the world. If there's a topic, we have an opinion on it, and you know what "they" say about opinions! Most of what is posted here involves a heavy dose of hip-shooting conjecture, but unlike some other blogs, we don't represent it as fact. Read More…